LAS CRUCES -- In a district that's top-heavy -- really, thus far in 2013, it's been defined as Las Cruces High and everyone else -- the Alamogordo Tigers came to town and played the Bulldawgs in a competitive game.

LCHS escaped with a 63-53 win, moving to 5-0 in league play while Alamogordo is 2-3.

"I think we needed that as a team," said Bulldawgs point guard Joseph Garza. "We had a week off, we were ready to come out here and play. And they were ready, maybe even more than us. They came out here and shot the lights out. I think it was a good experience for us."

The Tigers did in fact come to LCHS with a plan to play the Bulldawgs tough. The game started as a shootout, highlighted by Garza (four first-quarter 3-pointers, five total in the first half) and Alamo standout Tyler Day (three first-quarter 3-pointers, six total in the first half). At intermission, LCHS led 38-34.

Day, a first-year player at Alamogordo who came on board when his father, Mike, returned to the school as head coach this season, finished the night with eight made 3-pointers and 28 total points.

"The crowd gets into it. He's a great shooter, great player," Garza said of going toe-to-toe against the opposition. "It was fun, going back and forth like that."

"They were shooting that ball," LCHS head coach William Benjamin said. "Thank God Garza's gun was loaded and he was shooting it, making his shots too.

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At the end of the day, Las Cruces High had the advantage inside and it showed in the form of Trevor Noel (some slam dunks on the interior, and 15 points on the evening) and Kai Williams (14 points). Garza finished the night with a team-high 21, although just four of those came in the second half.

"I think their big guys made a difference in the end. Inside," Mike Day said following the contest. "I think our guards definitely canceled out each other. It was just a matter that, I thought their guys got inside our guys tonight."

The Tigers wouldn't go quietly into the night, trailing just 57-53 with 1:30 remaining following a 3-pointer from TJ Jones.

But they wouldn't get any closer and were ultimately undone by some critical components of the game -- two flubbed fast-break opportunities in the final period; a tough charging call late against the Tigers that came under the LCHS bucket; and a 10-3 foul differential in favor of the Bulldawgs during the second half.

A 16-3 free-throw advantage for the Bulldawgs followed although, in many respects, such calls came in the context of the game: For one, LCHS went to the line down the stretch, with Alamo fouling in an attempt to remain within striking distance; and also the style of play for both teams, as the Tigers made 11 3-pointers and just nine two-point shots total, indicating they had a tough time against the Bulldawgs size advantage.

"We did try to get the ball inside," Mike Day said. "You've got to remember -- they've got three guys inside that are pretty good."

Contact Teddy Feinberg at tfeinberg@lcsun-news.com. Follow him on Twitter @TeddyFeinberg